Dr. Mathias Rask-Andersen, Uppsala University, Sweden

Principal Investigator: Dr. Mathias Rask-Andersen

4 year grant from Swedish Society for Medical Research (SSMF) for 1,70,000 SEK per year and a 4 year grant from Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapradet) for 6,000,000 SEK total

1a: This project aims to determine interactions between genetic factors and lifestyle factors: diet, food preference and physical activity on phenotypic outcomes related to overweight and obesity. For this purpose, a hypothesis-driven approach will be applied to analyze interactions between lifestyle factors and genetic variants with known associations with body mass, body adiposity and diabetes through GWAS. A genome-wide exploratory approach will also be utilized to identify new gene-environment interactions that predispose higher body mass, higher body adiposity and risk of obesity. Results from this type of analysis can guide physicians in developing patient recommendations based on genotype

1b: The goal of the project is to develop methods to identify gene-environment interactions, with a focus towards body mass and body adiposity. These methods can be applied to further projects of a similar nature and helps develop the UK Biobank resource in line with its stated purpose.

1c: Statistical models will be employed to analyze association between genotype and phenotypic measurements of body mass and body adiposity. Linear regression models that incorporate lifestyle factors will be used for association studies. For the genome-wide approach, the current available dataset of ~150,000 participants will be used as an exploratory cohort. Validation of exploratory observations will be validated in the remaining portion of the full cohort as it becomes available.